A Pike Place locals want to visit? New plan calls for wineries, sidewalk cafes, and fewer cars

M

ost people in Seattle say they love the Pike Place Market.

But they’ll also tell you they rarely go there and that it’s crowded and overrun with tourists.

While tourists spend more money at the market per visit, locals help sustain it during the shoulder seasons.

Lately, visits by locals have been declining.

Now, a new master plan approved Thursday aims to entice locals back by returning to the market's roots — food.

While crafts will always remain important, the market's governing body hopes to turn it into a “food life” destination. That means a place where people can find not only abundant local produce, but restaurants that advertise their ingredients as sourced from the market.

Ideas outlined in the master plan include heritage bakeries, local wineries, First Nations cuisine, and a coffee and chocolate roastery.

The renewed emphasis on food is also meant as a way to help out farmers.

Farms are more scarce than they were back when the market was saved from the wrecking ball, decades ago. Many older farmers don't expect the younger generation to continue their businesses.

The market hopes to further boost farmer profits by expanding its Communty Supported Agriculture program, setting up a stall in the market to attract more subscribers.

At a recent meeting, some non-food vendors voiced concerns about being left out. But market officials said they'll be supported, too.

New visitors coming to the market for food could be circulated past other kinds of vendors. For example, the Overlook Walk currently under construction, which connects the market to the waterfront, could eventually include a little eddy at the level of Western Avenue, where several unique shops receive a lot less notice.

Other aspects of the market's master plan aim to increase elbow room.

There’s a little side street called Pike Place, that gives the market its name.

On sunny Saturdays, it’s full of cars inching along bumper to bumper, plus people who spill out from overcrowded sidewalks.

The new plan suggests a more flexible approach with fewer cars and more people.

An artists’ rendering shows a lively street full of pedestrians, market stalls, and café tables. Market vendors are also shown unloading their trucks.

These are all ways the market could "activate" the street, were the city to give it the authority to do so.

Cynthia Hope, who sells international crafts, expressed concern about the plan.

“I am adamantly opposed to closing the street and developing it into some little Parisian walkway,” she said, because crowded sidewalks force visitors inside stores, where they're more likely to shop.

The market’s organizers say there's still a long discussion ahead, and stakeholders will play a role in shaping the final proposal.

A spokesperson for the market's Public Development Authority said the ideas expressed in the document "were developed from community feedback and are meant for further study and input."

At the meeting Thursday, all 11 members of the Pike Place Market Public Development Authority voted to approve the plan.